A new Michigan bill would end unemployment benefits for job seekers who fail or refuse to take a drug test required by a prospective employer.MLive File Photo

LANSING, MI -- Unemployed residents who fail or refuse to take a drug test required by a prospective employer could lose jobless benefits under a pilot program advanced Thursday by Michigan's Republican-led state Senate.

The measure, approved largely along party lines in a 28-10 vote, would treat failure or refusal to take a pre-employment drug test as proof that an individual "refused an offer of suitable work." But it would not require businesses to report results of drug tests unless they choose to.

Democrats in both chambers have raised concerns about the bill, which is part of a six-bill package to reform the state system offering cash assistance to residents who recently lost jobs.

"If you were really interested in people gaining employment, you wouldn't kick them and their families off of unemployment insurance, you would offer them drug treatment so they could live a sober life," Sen. Coleman Young II, D-Detroit, said Thursday during a floor speech.

"This isn't about stewardship, it's about demonizing a group of Michigan citizens and starting a witch hunt to score political points."

Republicans have defended the drug testing measure as a common-sense safeguard for employers and the unemployment insurance system as a whole.

"They're going to have to come to the realization that they shouldn't be doing drugs," said state Sen. Mark Jansen, R-Gaines Township. "It's illegal, and it can cost you your job, and now your unemployment. I'm not sure what's wrong with that. To me, that's not politics."

House Bill 4952, introduced by state Rep. Ken Goike, R-Ray Township, now heads back to the lower chamber, which approved an earlier version but must sign off on changes before sending it to Gov. Rick Snyder's desk.

Jansen, who chairs the Senate committee that updated the bill, added language protecting a person's right to use legal prescription drugs, but he conceded that courts may have to determine if that includes medical marijuana.

The House previously adopted an amendment that would require lawmakers to revisit the drug-testing bill after one year to determine whether the policy should continue.

Other proposals in the unemployment package, approved by the Senate in bipartisan votes, would give the state greater power to recover payments made on the basis of fraudulent claims, authorize charges to an employer who fails to provide required information and change how recovered funds are disbursed.

Four of the bills will ensure that Michigan complies with new federal rules and allow continued access to grant money and unemployment tax credits for businesses. The drug-testing measure is not related to the new federal rules, however.

The legislation is not the first time Michigan Republicans have looked to link drug testing to public assistance. Earlier this year, the House approved a measure that would require suspicion-based drug testing for some welfare recipients. The Senate has not yet voted on that bill.

Jonathan Oosting is a Capitol reporter for MLive Media Group. Email him, find him on Google+ or follow him on Twitter.